Backpacks generally are configured to be worn on a user's back via a pair of shoulder straps and to carry a load. Backpacks may be configured to be utilized while engaging in outdoor activities, such as hiking, trekking, running, road cycling, and mountain biking, in which the user's motion may agitate and/or jostle the contents of the backpack. Thus, backpacks configured to be utilized during such activities may include one or more compression straps configured to compress a volume of the backpack to stabilize the load enclosed therein, thereby restricting the contents of the backpack from shifting with respect to each other and with respect to the backpack. Additionally, backpacks configured to be utilized while engaging in outdoor activities may include a pair of hip belts configured to be selectively secured around a user's waist to snugly secure the backpack and its load relative to the user's body to further stabilize the load on the user's back. Such hip belts also may serve to transfer a portion of a weight of the load from the user's shoulders to the user's hips.
Backpacks that include compression straps as well as hip belts generally permit adjustment of a degree of compression produced by the compression straps as well as a fit of the hip belt around the user's waist. Each compression strap and hip belt may include an accompanying adjustment strap, each of which may need to be adjusted independently to achieve the desired fit and degree of compression. For example, a backpack may require a user to adjust each of a pair of compression straps to symmetrically compress a load within the backpack, and to separately adjust each of a pair of hip belts to symmetrically adjust the fit of the backpack around the user's waist, thus requiring independent adjustment of each of a total of four adjustment straps. Additionally, under- or over-compression of the load may render it difficult to properly adjust the hip belt size without needing to revisit the compression adjustment. Hence, adjusting each of the hip belt size and the degree of compression may require an iterative process to optimize both the fit and compression of the backpack, which may be frustrating and/or time-consuming. Furthermore, in some cases, the compression adjustment straps may not be readily accessible to the user when the user wears the backpack, further complicating the fit and compression optimization process. Additionally, in some cases, the presence of several adjustment straps may be cumbersome and/or may introduce a risk of the user inadvertently tightening or releasing the adjustment straps while wearing the backpack and engaging in recreational activities. In some further cases, a backpack may be configured such that the hip belts and compression straps are adjusted simultaneously and by an equal amount, which may result in over and/or under tightening of the hip belt and/or compression of the load and thus preclude both from being independently adjusted to a desired degree. Thus, there exists a need for backpacks with cooperatively adjusted hip belts and compression straps that are simple, easy, and intuitive to adjust.
Backpacks with cooperatively adjusted hip belt segments and compression strap segments are disclosed herein. A backpack includes a pack body that includes at least one storage compartment, at least one shoulder strap operatively coupled to the pack body and configured to at least partially support the backpack upon a user's shoulders when the user wears the backpack, and a belt assembly configured to extend around the user's waist when the user wears the backpack.
The pack body includes a back panel configured to lie adjacent to the user's back when the user wears the backpack and an exterior panel that faces away from the back panel. The exterior panel is at least partially separated from the back panel by a storage compartment of the at least one storage compartment.
The belt assembly includes at least one compression strap segment configured to selectively adjust a pack volume of the pack body; at least one hip belt segment configured to at least partially support the backpack upon the user's hips when the user wears the backpack; at least one adjustment strap interconnecting a corresponding compression strap segment and a corresponding hip belt segment; and a releasable fastener configured to selectively secure the belt assembly around the user's waist when the user wears the backpack. Each compression strap segment includes a compression strap segment pack end that is coupled to the pack body and a compression strap segment adjustment end that is coupled to a corresponding adjustment strap. Each hip belt segment includes a hip belt segment pack end that is coupled to the pack body at a location proximal the back panel relative to a corresponding compression strap segment pack end and a hip belt segment adjustment end that is coupled to a corresponding adjustment strap.
The backpack additionally includes a belt assembly waist loop with a belt assembly waist perimeter, such that the belt assembly waist loop is partially defined by each hip belt segment and a portion of each adjustment strap that extends between the corresponding hip belt segment and the releasable fastener. Each adjustment strap is configured to selectively adjust each of the pack volume and the belt assembly waist perimeter. The belt assembly is configured such that, responsive to the user applying a tension force to the adjustment strap, each of the pack volume and the belt assembly waist perimeter decreases by a respective degree that depends upon a ratio of the force required to decrease the pack volume to the force required to decrease the belt assembly waist perimeter.